The present invention relates to fishing reels. In particular, the present invention relates to a spool configured to reduce friction during casting.
This invention pertains to fishing reels with a fixed spool and a rotary line pick up, in which a rotary pick up drum supports a bail arm and is engaged in axial rotation by means of a crank handle. The retractable bail arm is articulated on the pick up drum to swivel between a retracted position that frees the fishing line in order to allow it to unwind axially from the spool, and a retrieval position that envelopes the spool for retrieving, for guiding and for winding the line onto the spool when the pick up drum rotates.
During use, the fishing reel is installed on the fishing rod with its front-rear shaft positioned parallel with the fishing rod, the spool being mounted on the front-rear axis of the reel. The spool comprises a peripheral groove for line retrieval that is limited by a front flange and a rear flange.
When rod and reel fishing, the line is initially wound on the spool. The fisherman swivels the bail arm to bring it into a retracted position, and he casts the line, which rapidly unwinds from the spool. During this casting operation, the line comes in contact and rubs on the periphery of the front flange of the spool.
With standard reels, we have already tried to reduce friction between the line and the periphery of the front flange of the spool to increase the range for casting. For this, we have provided a front flange, the type of surface of which helps the line slide better. In some reels, the periphery of the front flange has been made of ceramics.
These solutions generally lead to a considerable increase in the cost of manufacturing the reel, and the results do not last because of possible damage to the surface that is peripheral to the front flange of the spool, this damage is caused by wear of the surface and possible shocks that could arise while using the reel.
With this invention, a new means for reducing friction between the line and the periphery of the front flange of the spool in a fishing reel is suggested, in order to decrease the effort required by the user to reach a given distance while casting, or to increase the range for casting for a given throwing force.
The solution according to the invention consists of decreasing the points of contact between the line and the peripheral surface of the front flange of the reel, in order to reduce friction.
Therefore, to meet these objectives and others, according to the invention a spool for a fishing reel is designed to be mounted on the front-rear shaft of a fishing reel and comprises a peripheral groove for receiving the line that is limited by a front flange and by a rear flange; the front flange comprises at least two peripheral areas with a radius that is progressively smaller than the radius from the intermediate peripheral areas that is between them.
In a preferred method of implementation, the front flange comprises three peripheral areas with a smaller radius, evenly positioned relative to the perimeter of the front flange.
The intermediate areas on the front flange that separate the areas with a smaller radius preferably have a rounded peripheral profile to assist the normal peripheral sliding of the line while casting.
According to the invention, the size reductions of the radius in the peripheral areas with a smaller radius may be roughly the same, or different.
The amount by which the radius can be reduced in size in the areas with a smaller radius is preferably chosen to correspond approximately to the radial height of the spool taken by the quantity of line used for a nominal casting, that is for casting with a reel within the normal conditions. Usually, the size reduction of the radius may range between approximately 10% and 35% of the radius in the intermediate peripheral areas.